


Confiscated and Highly Dangerous

by iam93percentstardust



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Gen, Swearing, The Marauder's Map
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-03
Updated: 2017-07-03
Packaged: 2018-11-22 23:03:54
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,473
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11390268
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iam93percentstardust/pseuds/iam93percentstardust
Summary: During their first year, Fred and George Weasley discovered the Marauder's Map. How exactly did they figure out how to make it work?





	Confiscated and Highly Dangerous

The common room was quiet. Everyone else had gone to bed but for Fred and George, the night was just beginning. For the first time since they’d stolen the strange piece of parchment from Filch’s office, they had the chance to really look at it.

“Wonder what it is?” Fred asked. He stared at the parchment as though staring really hard would make it do anything. “Can’t see why-”

“-it was marked Highly Dangerous,” George agreed, nodding. “It’s just a spare bit of parchment.”

Words began to scroll across the paper. The two boys gasped. “Quick, what’s it say?” George asked.

It was obvious: _Messrs. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs express their astonishment that two young troublemakers thought this was “just” anything._ Fred and George gaped at each other. As one, they turned back to the now thoroughly fascinating parchment.

“How do you know we’re troublemakers?” George said suspiciously.

The original words faded into the parchment and new words took their place. _Mr. Moony would like to say that Messrs. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs are aware that Mr. Filch confiscated this years ago and now they’ve come under new ownership? Only mischief-makers would have done that._

The boys shrugged. The explanation made sense. Still… Dad worked in the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Department. Some of the stories he told came back to them: tales of books that made you speak in limericks, novels that you could never put down, some books even burnt people’s eyes out. How did they know that this piece of paper hidden away in the Confiscated and Highly Dangerous Drawer wasn’t, in fact, dangerous? They didn’t think that Filch was smart enough to figure out what was dangerous and what wasn’t but they weren’t certain.

“How do we know we can trust you?” Fred asked, voicing the thought both boys were thinking.

_Mr. Wormtail would like to point out that Messrs. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs are also taking a risk in trusting the people who picked this up._

Fair enough. Fred took out his wand. “ _Revelio_ ,” he said confidently, pointing his wand at the words. He didn’t really know the spell. It was above his year but he’d heard Dad use it before.

New words spread across the page. _Mr. Prongs would like to voice his disappointment in thinking that spell would work._

George snorted.

“Well go on. Let’s see you do any better,” Fred challenged.

“I’ll bet you a Sickle I can figure it out faster than you can,” George replied, taking out his own wand.

“You’re on.”

He tapped the parchment lightly. “I, George Weasley, request that you reveal your secrets.”

_Mr. Wormtail thinks that George Weasley can’t possibly be serious._

_Mr. Padfoot knows that Hogwarts troublemakers are smarter than that. George Weasley couldn’t have possibly been trying all that hard._

Fred laughed. “Bad luck, Georgie.”

“I don’t even like it when Mum calls me that and you think that I’m going to like it any more when you do?” He passed the scrap back to Fred. “Your turn.”

Fred thought hard. He thought long. This effort had to be more serious than his last one. He had an entire Sickle resting on the outcome. George was getting ready to snatch the piece of parchment back and tell his twin that he’d wasted his shot. Then Fred declared in a staged whisper, “I promise to fuck shit up.”

George gaped at his brother. They’d heard Bill use such language before, usually right before Mum washed his mouth out with soap. They both knew they weren’t allowed to use those words and neither of them had ever bothered to.

Glancing at George, Fred saw that he was staring. He smirked and then shrugged. He had no idea how to make the strange piece of paper work so swearing at it might as well be his effort.

New words were blossoming across the scrap.

_Mr. Moony would like to ask Mr. Weasley why he thought such foul language is necessary to accomplish mischief._

_Mr. Padfoot would like to high five Mr. Weasley._

The words stopped and both Fred and George wondered why Messrs. Wormtail and Prongs hadn’t weighed in. Then, underneath the words of Mr. Padfoot, another sentence from Mr. Moony appeared.

_Mr. Moony would like to admonish Mr. Padfoot for encouraging such behavior from two young people._

The boys sniggered. “Why did you do it though?” George asked.

“Might as well,” Fred replied. “Maybe it’ll shock them into revealing something.” It seemed though that Fred had actually hit on something as Messrs. Moony and Padfoot’s conversation disappeared and different words shone on the parchment.

_Mr. Wormtail would like to point out that Mr. Weasley is getting warmer and that Messrs. Moony and Padfoot are getting distracted._

“Warmer?” George said. “How could that have been getting any warmer?”

_Mr. Prongs would like to ask Messrs. Weasley what they plan to use this piece of parchment for._

“You said it yourself earlier,” George pointed out. “For troublemaking purposes.”

_Mr. Prongs thinks that perhaps Messrs. Weasley could restate that by saying that they are up to no good?_

George seized the parchment just as Fred’s hand flew out to get it. He stuck his tongue out at his twin. Fred made a swipe for the paper but George danced backward. “Nope, it’s my turn now,” he said.

“Nonsense. You wasted it by asking if I was getting warmer.”

“I didn’t specifically ask Messrs. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs. It was a rhetorical question that they chose to answer.”

Fred waved a hand in the air. “Details, details.”

But George didn’t hand the paper over. He was convinced that he had the right answer now and was going to give it a try. He was going to win that Sickle off his brother if it was the last thing he ever did.

He tapped the parchment with his wand and said, “I promise that I am up to no good.”

_Mr. Prongs would like to have a pint with Messrs. Weasley as they seem just like his kind of people. As long as they solemnly swear it._

Fred let out a bark of a laugh that he quickly stifled. For a moment, he’d forgotten that they were in the quiet common room, late at night. He didn’t want any of the prefects coming downstairs to yell at them and maybe even confiscating the paper again. He held out his hand. George reluctantly handed the scrap back over to him.

“Muffed it, didn’t you?” he teased.

He reverently laid the parchment down on the table again- even if he never figured out how to work out the confiscated and highly dangerous paper, he figured it was owed some respect. Mr. Prongs’ new words caught his eye and he took a closer look at them. It was an odd thing to say, to solemnly swear something.

It hit him all at once. Completely forgetting the bet, he murmured, “I think I’ve got it.” He tapped the parchment again with his wand.

“I solemnly swear that I am up to no good.”

Fred and George caught a brief glimpse of _Mr. Padfoot would like to complain that Mr. Prongs was far too helpful_ before it disappeared and thin ink spread spiderlike across the page from the point where Fred’s wand had touched. They joined, crisscrossed, and fanned into every corner of the ragged old bit of parchment. At the top, in great, curly green lettering proclaimed the words:

_Messrs. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs_

_Purveyors of Aids to Magical Mischief-Makers_

_are proud to present_

_The Marauder’s Map_

Together, Fred and George whispered, “Wicked,” and exchanged excited glances. Their attention turned back to what they now knew to be a map. A highly detailed map of Hogwarts lay sprawled out before them, labeling every room and passageway, even the secret ones.

“Fred, look!” George said, clutching his twin’s shoulder. He pointed at the area where the Gryffindor common room was labeled. Fred leaned in so close his nose was almost touching the parchment- and then he saw them. Two tiny dots in the common room, marked as Fred Weasley and George Weasley. He took a glance around the castle. There was Dumbledore pacing in his study, Filch prowling the second floor, and Professor McGonagall grading essays in her office.

Fred leaned back, eyes shining as he looked at George. “Think of it,” he whispered. “The whole of Hogwarts open to us. We’ll know who to avoid when and what are the best ways out of the castle.”

George nodded fervently. “This is exactly what we need.”

Fred paused. He glanced back down at the map where he could see Filch patrolling and then his eyes slid to a secret passageway that led directly off the map. “George,” he finally said. “Let’s raise some hell.”


End file.
